Huawei’s smartphones no longer have access to the Google Play Store due to a US ban on the China-based company. As a result, any phone the company launched after the P30 series was released in March 2019 lacks popular apps like Facebook, Instagram, Google Netflix, YouTube, etc.
So, for those who buy a newer Huawei handset like the Mate 30 Pro, Mate XS, or P40 series, the answer is to get all you need is the Phone Clone app.
The Phone Clone app is available on the Play Store and the App Store. First, download the app on your old phone.
After downloading Phone Clone, press the “This is the old phone” button to begin. After this step, the old phone will try to scan a QR code.
On the new phone during the setup process, your Huawei handset will ask you how you want to set up your device. Then tap on the “Phone cloning” option. You will then need to select whether it is the new phone or the old phone. Tap the new phone option and select the type of phone you’re transferring from (Huawei, Android, or iOS). The two handsets then establish a connection.
Once the connection is established, Phone Clone will ask you what kind of data you want to transfer including apps, contacts, message history, etc. What’s important here is to make sure you download your essential apps. For me that includes apps like 1password, Instagram, and Spotify.
Huawei says the phone transfers 1 GB of data per minute.
Once the transfer is complete, all of your apps should be downloaded to your new Huawei phone.
What’s pretty good about the Phone Clone app is that you can do this multiple times and not just when you are setting up your device. So if you find that you are missing an app, you can download the app to your old smartphone and start the process over. It also allows you to update apps not available in Huawei’s app gallery, giving access to important security updates.
